Buggy excitedly waved a few treasure maps in his hand, practically dancing as he eagerly opened them up and studied the contents.
The more he looked, the brighter his eyes shone.
"Ohhh!!! All these treasures are on islands in the East Blue!! That's perfect!!!"
His white-gloved hand split off and traced across the maps. Buggy immediately recognized the shapes of many islands marked on them.
Some of them were even places he had visited before.
"Who would've thought… These seemingly ordinary little islands are actually hiding treasures…"
Buggy studied the maps with sparkling eyes.
Beside him, Orin adjusted his collar with a smile on his face.
"Eh? Is that so? Well, what a coincidence, hahaha…"
In an instant, the two were laughing together like old friends. Buggy's upper body split off and floated up to sling an arm around Orin's shoulder, the two of them leaning against each other like inseparable buddies.
Standing nearby, Mihawk crossed his arms, watching the pair with a faintly bemused expression, unsure what to say.
Treasure maps, huh…
If you were referring to the stack of papers Orin had just handed Buggy, Mihawk could tell you without hesitation—
Those so-called "treasure maps" were nothing more than scraps of paper Orin had grabbed along the way and hastily doodled on.
To make them look authentic, he'd even crumpled them up several times, stomped on them, and dirtied them a little.
Then, he'd called Sammi via Den Den Mushi:
"Hey, Sammi, I'm sending you a few 'treasure maps.' Get someone to bury some actual treasure at those spots—doesn't need to be much, just a few hundred million at each location."
"Oh, and make sure someone keeps watch from the shadows. Don't let anyone dig them up early."
Although Mihawk wasn't entirely sure if it was just his imagination, he couldn't help but feel that Orin treated this Buggy very differently from Shanks, who had also been a crewmate aboard Roger's ship.
And…
This clown-looking guy seemed ridiculously weak.
From Mihawk's perspective, anyone who'd once sailed under the Pirate King shouldn't necessarily be a monster like Orin… but at the very least, they should be somewhat like Shanks—someone Mihawk himself could acknowledge.
But this Buggy…
"Oi, Hawk Eyes, let me introduce you! This is my best buddy, Buggy! He's the natural nemesis of all swordsmen!!!"
"…???"
Hearing Orin's words, Mihawk's sharp gaze finally shifted. For the first time, he gave this clown a serious look.
"Nemesis… of swordsmen?"
Orin patted Buggy's shoulder and confidently explained:
"That's right! Purely from a swordsmanship standpoint, even if he faces one of your slashes, Buggy can walk away unharmed."
"Y-Yeah… that's right… Hahahahaha…"
Outwardly, Buggy puffed up with false confidence, but deep inside, he was screaming, his eyes bulging and mouth agape.
If he failed to dodge, he'd definitely be sliced in half!!!
Of course he knew who Mihawk was—the greatest swordsman in the entire world! Rumors even said Mihawk's swordsmanship had surpassed Orin's at some point!
But with Orin hyping him up like this, how could Buggy possibly let him down? He could only force himself to laugh and act tough.
"I see…"
Hearing that, Mihawk narrowed his hawk-like eyes, studying Buggy closely. Could it be that he had misjudged this clown?
A man of few words, Mihawk simply reached for the massive black blade on his back and slowly drew Yoru in front of him.
Orin smiled faintly from the side.
Before Buggy could even react, a flash of black light streaked through the air.
Swish—
From his waist upward, Buggy's upper body floated into the air, cleanly separated. The severed area emitted a faint darkness, but Buggy himself seemed completely unfazed—no pain, no damage.
"This is… that weird ability just now?"
Mihawk hadn't expected it to be… passive.
"It won't work. Even if you coat your slash with Haki, it's useless."
Orin caught Buggy's upper body and pressed it back onto his lower half, reconnecting him seamlessly.
"Buggy's ability prevents slashes from making contact with his real body. And since Haki needs to strike the actual body to counter a Devil Fruit's power, it can't bypass his separation."
It was similar to Katakuri's Mochi transformation—even with Armament Haki, you'd have to land a direct hit on his real body for it to do any damage.
Of course, that didn't mean Mihawk couldn't handle Buggy.
A single punch coated with even a modest layer of Armament Haki would probably beat Buggy half to death.
Hearing Orin's explanation, Mihawk's lips twitched slightly.
Come to think of it… if Buggy's physical abilities and Haki were even slightly stronger, his Chop-Chop Fruit would indeed make him a natural counter to swordsmen. That thought alone was enough to make Mihawk pay attention.
Buggy, huh?
Mihawk silently etched the name into his memory.
...
"Alright, boys!!! Time for a banquet!!!"
"OOOOHHHH!!!"
Orin, with no sense of arrogance, sat cross-legged among the Buggy Pirates' crew, which instantly made them whisper among themselves and exchange incredulous glances.
No way…!
The infamous Black Emperor, Orin, was actually Captain Buggy's close friend?!
Heavens above!!!
All this time, they thought Captain Buggy was bluffing!!!
In the East Blue—where even bounties over ten million are rare—the idea of sitting next to a man with a 4.49 billion Belly bounty was unimaginable.
It was like a low-paid office worker suddenly sharing a dinner table with a billionaire CEO.
Some of them were trembling so hard they could barely reach for their drinks.
Nearby, Mohji and his lion Richie—the same two who had just been sent flying by a single glare from Orin—were shaking the worst. Their faces were swollen, and their eyes were filled with pure terror.
They'd actually tried to challenge someone like him… they'd practically had a death wish!
Seeing Buggy's crew looking nervous and stiff, Orin didn't push them. He simply clinked glasses with Buggy and drank leisurely.
Then, as if suddenly remembering something, Buggy's head detached and flew upward, shouting orders to his men:
"Ah, right! Almost forgot!"
"Huh? Nani?"
Buggy waved at his crew.
"Hey!!! Bring out my special stash—the one we seized the other day!!!"
"Yes, Captain Buggy!!!"
A few crewmates rushed toward the back of the circus tent and soon returned, pushing a cart piled high with…
Oranges.
Big, plump, juicy-looking oranges, clearly of excellent quality.
"I've been searching for these beauties for years, Orin! These are the finest oranges you can find in the entire East Blue market! I just haven't had the chance to squeeze them into juice yet."
"You… still remember that, Buggy?"
Orin paused, his gaze softening slightly, his expression a little complicated.
He hadn't expected Buggy to hold on to something he'd said so long ago.
"What the hell are you talking about, Orin!!! I promised you I'd treat you to the best orange juice in the world, and Buggy-sama NEVER breaks a promise!!!"
"These might not be the best oranges in the world right now, but someday…"
Buggy clenched his fists, his separated arms flying high above him, his face deadly serious, jaw tight as he declared:
"I, Buggy-sama, will DEFINITELY find them!!!"